NOTTINGHAM FOREST THE 1970's

JOHN WINFIELD Nottingham Forest
TOMMY BALDWIN Chelsea
this time Carlisle United after a replay.
John Winfield had been injured for this
game, ending a sequence 150 consecutive
appearances.
I’m off...
There was an interesting letter in the
Football Post after Hennessey’s transfer
from a person that may be familiar to
you. Phil Soar, Wollaton, wrote ‘No club
prepared to sell its star and captain can
claim to be a leading British team. I shall
be very interested to watch the progress of
Nottingham Forest, but it will be from the
terraces of the Baseball Ground’.
Terry meanwhile was to have a largely
unsatisfactory spell at Derby. His career
curtailed not only by injury but there
was also a big fallout with Brian Clough,
whom the player blamed for mismanaging
his injury problems.
Largely overlooked because of the
furore over the Hennessey transfer,
there was another break with the past as
legendary keeper Peter Grummitt was
allowed to join Sheffield Wednesday for a
cut price £30,000.
As Peter recalls ‘ Matt Gillies never
fancied me as a keeper, I don’t know why,
perhaps he thought I was exaggerating my
injuries or just plain injury prone. There
was one time at Arsenal when he chose to
play Alan Hill even when he was injured,
instead of me.
I didn’t want to leave but I wanted to
play and the manager made it quite clear
that it wouldn’t be at Forest. After I left,
I played over two hundred more games, I
guess that shows I wasn’t as injury prone
as he thought’.
Ironically just four weeks after he left,
Alan Hill suffered an injury that was to
prematurely end his career.
Despite all the negativity, the Reds
stretched their unbeaten run to eleven
games. During this run, there was also a
return to Nottingham for Joe Baker, now
with Sunderland and although he was
given a rapturous reception by the Trent
End, he was in truth a pale imitation of
‘King Joe’ and he was subbed after only 60
minutes having made little impression. It
was the occasion when his replacement in
the number 9 shirt, Alex Ingram notched
his first goal for the club.
There was also a fine 1-0 victory over
Liverpool in front of over 30,000 fans,
Richardson scoring the winner and putting
in a fine performance. The scoreline
flattered the visitors who would have been
beaten far heavier if the referee hadn’t
disallowed a couple of goals. In an attempt
to keep supporters better informed, after
he was substituted it was announced over
the tannoy that Richardson was suffering
from a sore throat.
The club was comfortably placed
in mid table and talk was of trying to
qualify for European competition, but just
as quickly the wheels came off and on a
personal note, ended Ian Moores Mexico
World Cup dream. Ian remembers that
day ‘I had just made my England debut
against Holland and performed well I
thought. Alf Ramsey had taken me to one
side and said I was definitely in his plans.
We were due to play Man City at
Maine Road, it was a very icy pitch, in
those days games were only called off if it
really was desperate. I just went to collect a
routine pass when suddenly Arthur Mann
slid right through the back of me. It was
a naughty challenge but routine for that
time. I tried to get up and carry on but it
was pretty clear that it wasn’t something I
could run off. I tried desperately to get fit
“There was an englishman, irishman,
scotsman & a welshman”...
6 NOTTINGHAM FOREST IN THE 1970s
NOTTINGHAM FOREST IN THE 1970s 7